


Just For One Day

by superallens



Series: Earth-26 [1]
Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Barry and Ray are related, Earth-26, M/M, ill tag this as i go, no relationships until later
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-03
Updated: 2017-01-03
Packaged: 2018-09-14 10:23:40
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,006
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9176827
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/superallens/pseuds/superallens
Summary: The one where Barry Allen works as Leonard Snart's personal assistant at ColdCo. and lives a fairly normal life. Except for the fact that ever since the Particle Accelerator exploded months ago, he's been... different. With the help of his best friend, Cisco Ramon, Barry becomes something bigger than even his child self could've ever dreamed of. He becomes The Flash.(or The Earth-26 fic)





	

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so I'm back? ish? I've been working hard on this for the past month or so, it's still a work in progress but I wanted to get the first tidbit up! this originally started as a Supergirl! AU for ColdFlash week and sorta turned into something more... that something more being Earth-26, a different Earth where everyone is the same, yet different.

“Excuse me! Sorry,” Barry muttered as he nudged his way through the crowd outside of ColdCo. The tall, lanky man juggled his keys, a coffee tray from Jitters, and his phone in his hands as he clumsily made his way through the crowd. He somehow managed to lodge his phone in between his shoulder and ear, craning his neck in the most awkward position.

His brown satchel slapped against his thigh as he walked the bustling streets of Central City. Men and women rushed around, left and right, as they tried to make their way to their nine to five jobs. 

Barry Allen was just a normal guy. A normal guy with normal hair and normal clothes and a normal job. He kept telling himself that over and over, even though he knew that was far from the truth. Ever since the particle accelerator exploded at S.T.A.R. Labs, he was, well, different. Electricity felt like it was constantly rushing through his veins and he could move at unimaginable speeds. Air couldn't move out of his way fast enough when Barry ran. But, Barry didn’t like to run. He heard the horror stories of people like him. He wanted to be safe from the outside world, and Barry was okay with hiding. Barry was okay with being Barry Allen, Leonard Snart’s — CEO of ColdCo. Worldwide Media —personal assistant.

“Yes, hi,” Barry muttered into his phone as he made his way closer to work. “I’m calling about the Correspondents Dinner. I _need_ to make sure Mr. Snart doesn’t end up next to Jill Stein again…”

Barry nudged the door to ColdCo. open with his shoulder before sliding his ID through the scanner. He moved through the simple security with practiced ease, smiling at his coworkers as he passed by. 

He eventually stuffed himself into the back of the nearly over capacitated elevator and waited patiently to get to the top floor. 

The elevator got to the top floor and Barry quickly bustled out. He picked up some folders from the receptionist’s desk as he walked by and tucked them under his arm. As if on cue, his best friend, Cisco Ramon, came bounding up to him with an iPad in hand.

“Did you see this?” Cisco asked as he fell into step with Barry. “There was an armored car robbery last night. There were no witnesses except for this homeless guy who _swears_ the perp had powers that could control weather.”

Barry nervously chuckled as he adjusted the bag on his shoulder. Nobody knew about his powers, not even his adoptive family- The Wests. When his parents died, they welcomed him to their own with open arms and Barry would forever be grateful to them. He couldn't tell Joe and Iris about his powers, even if though Barry knew they would support him. They were family, he had to keep them safe. Even if that meant safe from him.

“I’m telling you, they're out there! Metas!”

“Cisco, there is no such thing as metas,” Barry stated, followed by a nervous laugh. They had made their way to the desk outside of Leonard Snart’s office- Barry’s desk. Barry set down the folders, his keys, the coffee tray, and his satchel on his desk. He turned back to Cisco after quickly glancing at the door. “I would totally love to keep talking to you about metas, but Mr. Snart is gonna be here in fifteen seconds so I suggest you sit down.”

“Okay… how do you even do that?” Cisco muttered as he slid into his seat and pretended to be working on who knows what. Cisco was the main IT guy at ColdCo., and the man was a computer genius. He could crack just about any code without breaking a sweat. 

Barry picked the coffee out of the tray, the condensation of the cool cup dripping down his hand. He took his place next to his desk and waited for the elevator door to open.

So, how _did_ Barry know his boss was coming? Ever since he got his powers, he may or may not have secretly used them to flash towards the elevator, listening for the loud rattling of the contraption, and run back into position in the blink of an eye. The trick had done wonders for getting on Mr. Snart’s good side. 

Speaking of his boss, Barry watched as the elevator door opening, revealing a tall, older man with stiff posture and a snarl to match. The man was wearing a standard navy button up with a crisp black tie. Simple, but effective. 

“Good morning, Mr. Snart,” Barry greeted, cautiously approaching the older man. Snart scoped the room out before turning his attention towards Barry. His cold presence flooded the office as Snart walked towards his own, personal office. As he walked by Barry, he placed his tweed coat in Barry’s arms without a blink of an eye. Barry scrambled to place the coat gently on his desk before following Snart into his office.

“Here’s your Iced Americano. Cold.” Snart paused as he took the coffee out of Barry’s hand and into his own. 

“Well, that will be different.” Barry’s mouth tightened ever so slightly as he followed Snart deeper into his office. 

“I have a meeting with the board today at lunch, so cancel sushi with my sister. Oh, and cancel my therapist. I won’t be needing it if I’m not having lunch with my sister.”

“Got it,” Barry muttered as he scribbled notes down into the notepad he kept handy in his pocket. The Snart siblings were nationally known for their rival companies, Cold Co. and the Golden Planet. The two loved each other, but they truly knew how to push each other’s buttons.

“Go see if the new art director has the layout ready,” Snart muttered as he started flipping through one of the files on his desk. Barry furrowed his eyebrows at him.

“The new art director? Didn’t we just get a new one?”

“I fired him,” Snart said bluntly. Barry’s eyes widened, but Snart didn’t react as he continued to flip through the file. He eventually sighed as Barry still stood their with his mouth agape and eyes wide. “It’s not that I don’t see you gaping, it’s simply the fact that I don’t care.”

“You didn’t even give him a chance though,” Barry said without thinking. Snart set the file aside before looking at him.

“I did. I didn’t like him. I let him go. I should not have to justify my decisions to my assistant,” Snart said, reaching forward and grabbing a pen. “Besides, I hired a photographer from Star City who has proven to me that they will be a great asset to my team.”

“Star City?”

“Yes, believe it or not, but not every photographer is chasing that vigilante with the fancy suit. You’d think that by now we’d get a vigilante of our own,” Snart sighed. “Go get the layouts, Jerry. Don’t make me ask again.”

Barry nodded as he pivoted on his foot and made his way towards the door. He exited Mr. Snart’s office after whispering to himself, “It’s _Barry_.”

***

Barry walked into the familiar office that once belonged to Eddie Thawne. He knocked on the door frame twice before fully entering the room. 

“Hey,” Barry said hesitantly, not wanting to disrupt his new coworker. He looked at the female figure facing away from him as she dug through a box.

“Just a minute,” the woman replied as she continued to search for something.

“Mr. Snart sent me for layouts and you know how he is about waiting. Well, not really, your new and stuff… but yeah he hates waiting and I wouldn’t want you to get in trouble on your first day-”

“Do you always ramble this much?” the woman’s voice laughed. “He can wait a minute.”

“Have you met Mr. Snart?” Barry asked, a little shocked that someone would tell Snart to wait without hesitation.

“Yes. It’s not like he’s going to fire me or anything. It’d be his loss if he did,” the woman murmured as she stood up straight from her crouched position. She turned and faced Barry. “There we go! Hi!”

“Hey,” Barry murmured back as his eyes scanned the room. His eyes were immediately drawn to a photograph of the Atom. It was a picture taken from behind the vigilante, his hand raised in front of him  to blast something and the little sliver of his eyes that you could see were trained on a key point in the distance. It looked like the picture was popping out of the frame- it was beautiful. “It’s him.”

Barry walked up to the picture, a small smile on his face. 

“I’ve seen this picture a million times, my sister _loves_ him,” Barry babbled as he picked up the framed picture. “It won the Pulitzer.”  

“It was the first real shot of him,” the woman beamed with pride. “You know, he actually posed for that.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, I somehow got him to like me,” the woman said with a little laugh. Barry’s eyes bugged out of his sockets as he was dawned with a wave of realization.

“Oh my god, you’re Caitlin Snow!” Caitlin laughed.

“Nice to meet you,” she smiled as she extended her hand out to him. “And you are?”

“Oh! Oh, um, I’m uh,” Barry stuttered as he set the photo down so he could accept her gesture. “Barry. Allen. Barry Allen.”

“Nice to meet you, Barry.”

“Nice to meet you, Caitlin.”

“So, what’s he like?” Barry asked bluntly. “You know, _the Atom_.”

“He’s a sweetheart. Everything you’d expect from him, he is. He likes people to think he is a big, tough guy but in reality he’s like a puppy,” Caitlin said. “Don’t tell him I said that though!”

“Your secret is safe with me.”

“I appreciate it,” Caitlin replied with a smile. “You know, he’s actually the one who told me to take this position.”

“Really?”

“He said that it was time for me to start taking risks,” Caitlin shrugged. “Anyways, let me get those layouts for you before Leonard blows a fuse.”

Barry laughed as Caitlin picked up a few files from her desk. She promptly handed them to Barry.

“Here you go!”

“Thank you so much. It was nice to meet you, Caitlin.”

“You too, Barry. I’ll see you around?”

“Definitely!”

***

The day had gone by just like any other day. He ran errands for Mr. Snart, sorted through files, made calls, and by the end of of the day, he found himself curled up on the couch with Chinese takeout and the news report on.

Barry was just about to turn the station so he could watch cartoons when the breaking news report flashed onto the screen.

“Breaking News! Flight 237 to Seattle is experiencing extreme altitude loss. The pilot seems to be circling the city after apparent engine failure.”

“Seattle?” Barry asked aloud to himself as he leaned forward in his seat with bugged eyes. “Iris.”

His foster sister, Iris West, was on Flight 237 to Seattle for work. 

Barry bolted up from his couch and over to the nearest window. From his apartment, he could see the plane circling the city, one of its engines was aflame. 

Barry could feel the electricity coursing through him like Usain Bolt during the Olympics. His heart raced as he felt his hand begin to vibrate. He stared down at his vibrating hand and then back at the plane. He grasped onto his hand, urging it to stop as his mind raced.

If Barry didn’t do something, his sister, his _best friend_ , might die. 

Barry sharply turned away from the window and turned off the television. He slipped on his deep red hoodie as he walked out the door. He knew what he needed to do.

Barry ran. He ran faster than he ever had before. Faster than he could ever imagine. His legs ached as his feet slapped the pavement at impossible speeds. He didn’t know how he was doing it, he didn’t know _what_ he was doing. The only thought going through Barry Allen’s mind was saving Iris West. 

Barry had studied to become a CSI, a double major in physics and chemistry. He had submitted his application to the CCPD time and time again, but even with being Detective Joe West’s foster son and being more qualified than any of the other applicants, the department thought he was not old enough to handle the cases they dealt with. So, that’s how he ended up at ColdCo. 

Pages of his old textbooks coursed through his brain. Essays on motion, trajectory, the human anatomy, and the uses of various types of speed ran in circles in his mind as he tried to assess how he was going to save the plane. 

Then, it hit him. If he ran fast enough under the plane, he could create a wind tunnel. That tunnel would then carry the plane as he ran to another location. From there, he could land the plane safely. The only problem was, was that the engines were on fire. If he landed the plane in any flammable area, he would risk setting a part of the city aflame.

If he could somehow cause little to no displacement and move fast enough that he wouldn’t break the surface tension on the water, he would be able to land the plane in the water. 

With all the strength he could muster, Barry set off towards the plane. Once he was under the plane, time around him seemed to come to a stand still. That’s when he ran. He was able to run fast enough in a circle that the wind tunnel formed, lifting the plane up safely. He then ran towards the water, still running in a large circle. Eventually, he was able to land the plane into the water.

Barry’s body sunk into the water the moment he stopped running. He quickly swam up to the surface and reached for the plane’s wing. With the little strength he had left, he pushed himself onto the wing and stood up. His fringe and hoodie stuck onto his forehead, the drops of water dripping into his eye. As he stood there, catching his breath, the light from one of the news helicopters shone in his face. 

He turned to the plane where he made eye contact with Iris. He beamed at her, a giant smile taking up his face. Iris gave him a loving, half smile. Barry didn’t have to talk to her to know she was proud of him. 

Barry squinted as he took one last jagged breath. He shook out his limbs before taking off across the water. He did it. He saved Iris.

***

Barry felt weird the next day at work. It felt like the day after your first kiss. You know what you did, but nobody else did and you could feel the smugness in you because you were carrying this big secret. But it wasn’t a first kiss for Barry- it was revealing himself to the world as a speedster.

The second he walked into the top floor at ColdCo., people swarmed around the office, buzzing about the man who saved the plane. The local news was playing on every television around.

“Good morning, Central City. Our top story, the only story anyone is talking about- who is the mystery man who saved the plane? Despite extensive efforts, no one has been able to identify who, or rather what, he is.”

Barry’s eyes were slightly wide as he walked through the office to his desk, Mr. Snart’s morning order of an Iced Americano and a cinnamon raisin muffin in his hands. He walked past Cisco’s desk as he set the order on his own.

“Pretty cool, huh?” Barry asked, knowing that Cisco was super into metas.

“A plane-saving dude?” Cisco said, followed by a light scoff. “How is anybody supposed to take him seriously when he can’t even come up with a suit? I know that if I had powers, I would make sure I had a bitchin’ suit before I even thought about a stepping foot out into the public eye.”

Barry’s face twisted as an irritant feeling bubbled within him. He took off his satchel as he continued to listen to Cisco babble.

“What… Star City gets the Atom and what does Central get? Some rookie superhero?” Cisco shrugged.

“It is the guy’s first time out there. And he did save the plane! Cut him some slack,” Barry mumbled as he leaned against his desk. 

“So _now_ you care about metas! I see, I see,” Cisco teased before turning back around to work on who knows what. Barry nervously chuckled before unpacking stuff from his satchel.

***

Barry stood in the corner of Snart’s office as he watched the last of people move into the room. Snart had called an emergency meeting to discuss the meta who saved the plane. Aka Barry.

“Listen, I know you all are used to being second best, but this is new to me. The biggest and most controversial event to happen in the history Central City and yet we have no exclusive of any sorts,” Snart stated as he stood in front of the small group. He had his classic look of disappointment gracing his face.

“We don’t have much to go on. The image we’re working off of is low res-”

“I guess he’s around 6’2”. It’s tough to gauge with his height measured up against a plane.”

“Hair color black. Or dark brown.”

“Or maybe his hair is just dirty? From the soot from the plane?” Caitlin interjected as she sidled up next to Barry.

“Caitlin, excellent point,” Snart said, pausing briefly to look at Caitlin and Barry. “Do you think there is any connection to this hero and the Atom?”

“I’m not sure. He didn’t mention any family members to me,” Caitlin said. “But if he’s anything like him, he’s a hero. I have a feeling we’ll be seeing more of him.”

“We better,” Snart said, the tiniest glint of excitement in his eyes. “This man is the answer. We can finally get on the same sales levels as the The Golden Planet. Besides a good sob story, there is nothing people love more than a hero.”

Barry couldn’t help but let the smallest of smiles slip onto his face as he listened to his normally cold boss indirectly rave about him.

“We are going to blow him up. We will feature him online and in the paper, but we need high quality images. We need videos, an interview, and exclusive content. He is going to be Central City’s Atom, so go, let’s go make a hero out of this speedster.”

After Snart’s little speech, everyone beelined out of Snart’s office to get to work. Caitlin stayed by Barry’s side as they walked into the main floor.

“You know, that’s the first thing he did… save a plane,” Caitlin said, a mischievous glint in her eyes. Barry gave her a pointed look before she walked away.

Barry was bubbling with excitement. His whole life, he had been invisible. He had just been the boy whose parents had been murdered, the boy who hid behind his books. But now, he was something more. Something bigger than he could ever dream of.

Barry beelined to Cisco’s desk. “Cisco, I need to talk to you. On the roof.”

Before Cisco could even think about responding, Barry dashed off, leaving Cisco behind with a confused look on his face.

***

“Barry?” Cisco called out as he made his way onto the roof. “Whatever you have to say, can you make it quick? I don’t really do heights and Snart is breathing down my neck about the website.”

“Okay, uh, Cisco… I’m going to tell you something, something I haven’t even told Iris, or Joe… I can trust you, right?”

“Uh, yeah, yeah, of course. You’re my best friend, Barry.”

“Good, I-uh… I really just want someone to be happy for me about this,” Barry stuttered. “There’s something about me that for the past year I have been running from, heh, but last night, I finally let myself be who I am and I don’t want to stop.”

“Oh my god, you're coming out to me aren’t you! This is awesome-”

“No, Cisco! You already know I’m bi,” Barry said, cutting Cisco off. “I’m _him_! The man who saved the plane!”

Cisco gave Barry a skeptic look before chuckling. “Heh, okay. Yeah, yeah, okay, right.”

Cisco started walking away from Barry as Barry rolled his eyes. He watched on as Cisco walked away from him. Lightning flashed through Barry’s eyes as he ran forward and grasped onto Cisco’s shoulder.

“Wha-”

“Give me your phone.”

“Why?”

“Give me your phone and watch that building right there,” Barry said, pointing at the Smoak Technologies building a few blocks away.

“Okay…” Cisco murmured as he handed Barry his phone. In the blink of an eye, Barry was gone and back, barely breaking a sweat. He handed Cisco his phone back, where a picture of Cisco standing alone on the ColdCo. building was displayed.

“You’re-You’re…” Cisco stuttered as he pointed from his phone to Barry. “You’re _him_!”

“Yup,” Barry chuckled. “I’ve been trying to tell you.”

Cisco punched Barry’s shoulder as he stared at the picture in awe. 

***

That evening, Cisco sat in Barry’s kitchen with a piece of pizza in his hand. He was surrounded by his sewing equipment and fabrics and the duo had Barry’s playlist softly humming in the background.

“So, how is it? Does it fit?” Cisco called out to Barry. Barry was trying on the first costume Cisco designed. The second Barry had revealed to Cisco that he was the mystery speedster that night, costume ideas ran through his head like crazy. If anyone was gonna make the super suit for Barry, it was gonna be Cisco. If anyone else even attempted to take this away from him, they would have to pry the project out of his cold, dead hands.

Barry stepped out from around the corner looking obviously uncomfortable. He was wearing a crimson one piece that stopped mid thigh and had short sleeves. The material was thin and skin tight, making everything be on display.

“It’s a little snug,” Barry laughed hesitantly. “I can’t run around in this thing. Where’s the mask? Every good hero has a mask.”

“Just because the Atom has a mask doesn’t mean you have to.”

“I was the one who gave him the advice to add it to his suit.”

“So? You aren’t- wait _what_?”

“What?”

“You know the Atom?”

“Did I not tell you he’s my cousin?”

“Uh, no!”

“The Atom is my cousin.”

“Yeah, I know that now!” Cisco said, trying to contain his inner fanboy. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m gonna keep working on your super suit.”

Barry nodded before flashing away and changing back into his sweatpants. In a blink of an eye, he was back to sitting down next to Cisco and munching happily on his pizza. 

After a couple of hours, Barry was awoken from his sleepy daze by Cisco’s loud cheer.

“It’s complete!”

“What?” Barry mumbled, rubbing at his eyes.

“The suit, it’s finished, cowl and everything,” Cisco whispered as he proudly stared at his creation. “Fully equipped with tech and comms. Go try it on.”

When Barry put the suit on, it just felt right. He felt like a superhero in it. Barry stepped out with the cowl down and Cisco’s mouth gaped open at the sight of him.

“Dude,” Cisco said in awe. Barry slipped the cowl on and looked back up at Cisco. 

“What are the lightning bolts for?”

“You said you got struck by lightning and that’s how you got your powers? So I thought I would pay homage to that.”

“This is so cool,” Barry smiled.

“You’re officially a hero, Barry.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> leave your comments below! let me know what you think!! I'm so excited to be writing this, as i've been working on it for a little over a month. exciting stuff to come... :) xx


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